New research shows that lesbians and bisexual women, especially minority women, have less access to healthcare after cancer treatment than heterosexual women.
The research, just published in the latest issue of the journal “Cancer,” was conducted by the study’s lead, Ulrike Boehmer, from Boston University’s School of Public Health.
“What I found very disturbing was that sexual minority men had similar access to care [as] heterosexual men,” Boehmer told The Boston Globe. “In this particular finding, we don’t really know the exact reasons why.”
According to the Globe:
It took Boehmer four years to assemble enough survey data from the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention’s Behavior Risk Factor Surveillance System to conduct the study, which found that lesbians and bisexual women have poorer physical and mental quality of life after a cancer diagnosis. This is generally linked with higher mortality, the study found. …
Why is this study important?
[Boehmer:] It speaks to several audiences. I hope to reach our clinicians with this study. There is this ongoing issue of sexual minorities not feeling welcome in the healthcare system and that might factor in delaying care or not seeking routine care. I think it’s important for clinicians to have conversations with patients about sexual orientation, their preferences, and possible barriers to stay engaged in care.
Have you looked at other aspects of identity, such as race, in your research?
[Boehmer:] This is something I have wanted to do for a very long time, to look at sexual minority individuals who are racial minorities, and see if the picture is even worse. We just don’t have the numbers in the data set. I think it’s a very important question that needs to be addressed urgently.
What can be done to help mitigate this issue?
[Boehmer:] There are certainly a lot of opportunities for further education of healthcare providers, such as feeling comfortable in engaging in conversations around sexual orientation, simply feeling comfortable to ask. Often it can be as simple as finding the right language around these issues. Ongoing provider education is certainly a good step.
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